From the very start, in the Introduction, the author of this motivating book says,

What you make of your life is entirely up to you.

From the book's back cover: "... The sassy owner's guide to living the life you want.

Sassy indeed! Michelle McKinney Hammond has written one of the best books on taking charge of your life I've ever read, and I've read just about all of them, starting in the '80s.

Here's a quote that I wrote down, so I'd remember:

The only way a life gets transformed is when a person begins a new way of thinking, one that embraces a purposeful and strategic approach to getting the outcome he or she desires. The first thing you must do when addressing your life is to understand that it doesn't just happen.

First you need the "Foundation." The author explains the "Four Cornerstones" you need to build solidly on so your life doesn't eventually fall apart. One of the cornerstones is "you," and I love the way she says, "You can never blame anyone else for the way you live." That means no more whining. "You get to choose if you will be a gift to the world or a liability."

She then moves on to the four "Pillars" upon which your life stands. These are your "support structures." One of these is Faith, and Michelle explains that if you have enough of this you can protect your relationships from crumbling, your health from degrading, your finances from dwindling. She makes it sound so easily doable. The Pillar of Profession scores high with me. She says in part:

Our inherent talents or gifts actually make up the expression of His care for those on earth...this is why we are called to exercise authority and maintain order within our sphere of influence.

This, the author says, is the "Secret to your purpose and your success."

Next come the tools you need to build your life, and they must be "weathered and strong." You can never use weak tools to build something as important as a life.

... "You will acquire all your heart's desires as you make educated choices in the way you pursue love, success, financial gain, good health...All thinking not conducive to victorious living must be trashed.

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The most important lesson for me in this tools section as well as the entire book is the part devoted to "Character." Because it affects me so strongly, I copied these words:

As you move forward in life, you should see a major fortification taking place in the core of your being: a strengthening, a tightening. No longer should your emotions be out of control, swinging to extremes every time something threatens to rock your world. Experience should saturate your mind-set, making you more sound and certain. There should be a consistency and even keel to your faith and responses in any given situation because you've weathered storms before and come through.

To assemble our life with what we've learned so far, the author gives us a lesson in "living on the offense rather than on the defense." In other words, not always racing to put our fires. The Master Architect is said to be a God or order, and this book reminds us that "... there is a prescribed order to life."

Your life completely constructed, you'll have to learn about "Preventive Maintenance." The safe places to go for help. How to recognize the red flags in life and prevent the bad from happening if at all possible. And there are many things that we can avoid with proper focus, one of which is "warped philosophies" as mentioned by Paul in the New Testament.

The "Dance in Advance" philosophy laid out here is a great preventive maintenance tool.

We also get instructions for long-term maintenance and then comes the part we women love the best: Accessorize your life. Favor and Blessing are among the most beautiful accessories that add sparkle to your life.

The book is kind enough to leave us with a Troubleshooting section as well as a Quick Reference Guide.

This book took longer to read than most other books because it is so chock full of wisdom and guidance. It's not a fast read. It's a reference book you'll want to keep referring to. I can't say enough about it.